Crosbyton Solar Power Project:

An Inventory of Its Records, 1974-1986 and undated, at the Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library

Biographical Sketch

The Texas town of Crosbyton was the chosen site for the Solar Power Project conducted through Texas Tech's Electrical Engineering department. The project was the result of efforts begun in 1974 to find an alternative energy source to slow rapidly rising local utility rates. A 65-foot, bowl-shaped solar dish lined with mirrors and tilted at an angle was constructed to reap maximum sunlight, thereby concentrating the sun's heat and produce temperatures as high as 1,000 degrees F. The heat would be focused onto a receiver that heated water to create steam, and this steam would then be pumped through a turbine, which would in turn produce electricity. Dr. O'Hair, the donor of the materials, was a professor of electrical engineering and was active in the Project.

Scope and Content

The collection contains technical materials, news clippings, and a Solar Thermal kit which pertain to the construction, operation, and dismantling of the Crosbyton Solar Power Project. Transferred items include 5 contact sheets, 24 negatives, 1 transparency, and 106 prints.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions

Open for research

Related Material

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Crosbyton Solar Power Project Records, 1974-1986 and undated, Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas

Collection accession #(s):
1987-0053-B

Gift, 1987

Processed by

Lynn Whitfield, March 1998

Additional Sources

Collection Inventory